Hummingbirds _ Jewels of the Bird World
Hummingbirds - All 319 catalogued varieties of hummingbirds live on the American continents, from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego, and on neighboring islands. Their main concentration is in tropical South and Central America. With 163 kinds, Ecuador is in the lead. Brazil hosts at least 105 varieties.
The smallest hummer, and the tiniest specimen of the bird world, is the bee hummingbird of Cuba. Only two inches (5 cm) in length, it is about equal to the size of a large bumblebee. The largest hummingbird, Patagona gigas, reaches five or six inches (12.5 or 15 cm) in length.
The male ruby-throat sports a throat patch that glows in the sun like the jewel of its name. Such brilliant throat patches are common in a great number of varieties. In others, the metallic, bright colors distinguish only adult males. But there are some gorgeous females that exhibit their gay plumage as proudly as the males.
The brilliant colors of hummingbirds are not pigments but are structural. To illustrate: Think of a diamond and how it breaks up a beam of sunlight into the colors of the rainbow. Similarly, in order to get a glimpse of the iridescent plumage, the lighting must come from over your shoulders and must hit the feathers directly. But be quick, for the bird needs to flick its head just a few degrees and all the color vanishes.
Additionally, hummingbirds are endowed with lavish forms of feather arrangements. Some varieties display long, brilliant tail feathers. These flash like signal flags as the birds dart about among the flowers. Some show off fluffy tufts on the legs. Other fellows cut a dashing figure with whiskerlike plumes at the corners of the mouth.
And what an admirable variety of bills goes with the hummingbird family! For instance, the swordbill of the Andes has been described as a beak with a bird attached. Contrariwise, Ramphomicron microrhynchum owns a rare purple back but the skimpiest of bills, made for shallow flowers. The sicklebill, on the other hand, frequents curved flowers, for obvious reasons.
In 1962, Brazilian naturalist Augusto Ruschi rediscovered and caught the gorgeous rackettail (Loddigesia mirabilis) in the Peruvian Andes. This fascinating bird is so rare that it had been considered extinct. When courting, the handsome male curves its delicate twin tails under himself and frames his face with the rackets, all the while hovering in front of his spellbound lady.
Behavior and Other Lore
If you have ever had the opportunity to watch hummingbirds, you will readily agree that they are at once gorgeous and quarrelsome, curious and fearless. They come close to suck sugar water from feeders, and they may even feed from your hand.
These creatures will defend their territory against any bird, their own kind not excepted. A hummingbird will buzz around the head of a crow in fearless sallies, routing it eventually. They have been seen in skirmishes with hawks. Though 100 times larger, the hawk will beat an undignified retreat. And if two hummingbirds ever happen to get together on the same flower-laden bush, they bicker and chase.
Hummers spend their lives in the air or sitting on a perch, never on the ground. Even baths are taken while they fly. They plunge into pools, flutter through waterfalls, or fly through dewy foliage.
Despite their exquisite beauty, there is one "defect" they cannot hide. With the exception of Schistes geoffroyi, hummers have no singing voice. An intruding sparrow would carry away first prize at any hummingbird songfest. Some hummers muster an unmusical squeaking. But, alas, that is all!
Hummingbirds are indeed striking little creatures--lively and fearless, and, oh, so pugnacious! Contemplating their unrivaled variety of color and form is well worth the time. After watching them in their natural habitat, you will no doubt be prompted to agree that hummingbirds are, indeed, fascinating feathered acrobats.
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